Dual vial adapter assemblages for use with a drug vial containing a medicament and a liquid vial containing liquid contents for mixing with or reconstituting the medicament in the drug vial to form a liquid drug include one vial adapter for telescopic mounting on the liquid vial for puncturing same and another vial adapter for telescopic mounting on the drug vial for puncturing same. Dual vial adapter assemblages can be generally classified into two types as follows: A negative pressure type intended to be used with a drug vial under negative pressure for positively drawing liquid contents from a liquid vial thereinto. A gravitational flow type employing a gravitational flow of liquid contents from a liquid vial to a drug vial. The former type is generally intended for preparing a small liquid drug dosage and the latter type is generally intended for preparing a large liquid drug volume suitable for several liquid drug dosages or use with an IV set for infusion.
One exemplary negative pressure type of dual vial adapter assemblage is disclosed in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 6,558,365 to Zinger et al. entitled Fluid Transfer Device including two vial adapters having a highly similar resemblance but differing insofar as one vial adapter has a male connector and the other vial adapter has a female connector. The male connector is preferably a male Luer lock connector and the female connector is preferably a female Luer connector with a screw thread for screw thread attachment of a male Luer lock connector thereon. Such dual vial adapter assemblages are commercially available from West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., Exton, USA under the registered trademark MIX2VIAL.
According to the Instructions For Use (IFU) of the Zinger dual vial adapter assemblage, the vial adapter with the male connector is intended for telescopically mounting on a liquid vial and the vial adapter with the female connector is intended for telescopically mounting on a drug vial. The use of the Zinger dual vial adapter assemblage is as follows: First, a user initially telescopically mounts the vial adapter with the male connector on a liquid vial and only thereafter telescopically mounts the vial adapter with the female connector on a drug vial otherwise negative pressure is lost in the drug vial thereby preventing positive drawing of liquid contents from a liquid vial thereinto. Second, after the positive drawing of liquid contents from the liquid vial into the drug vial, the user detaches the vial adapter with the male connector and the now empty liquid vial from the vial adapter with the female connector mounted on the drug vial now containing liquid drug contents. And finally, the user connects a needleless syringe to the vial adapter with the female connector and aspirates the liquid contents from the drug vial thereinto.
However, in the case a user inadvertently confuses between the two vial adapters, and initially telescopically mounts the vial adapter with a female connector on the liquid vial and subsequently telescopically mounts the vial adapter with the male connector on the drug vial, the drug vial still positively draws the liquid contents from the liquid vial thereinto but the liquid drug is formed in the vial adapter with the male connector and not the female connector as per the IFU. Consequently, on detachment of the vial adapter with the now empty liquid vial from the vial adapter mounted on the drug vial containing the liquid drug, the vial adapter precludes direct attachment of a needleless syringe with its male connector thereonto for aspiration purposes.
One exemplary gravitational flow type of dual vial adapter assemblage is disclosed in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 8,752,598 to Denenburg et al. entitled Liquid Drug Transfer Assembly. US Pat. No. '598 FIG. 9 shows a dual vial adapter assemblage including two vial adapters having a highly similar resemblance but differing insofar one vial adapter has a female connector and the other vial adapter has a dual lumen dual ended liquid transfer spike for puncturing both a liquid vial stopper and a drug vial stopper. The Denenburg dual vial adapter assemblage advantageously does not require a specific order of telescopic mounting on a liquid vial and a drug vial by virtue of gravitational flow but in a similar manner to the Zinger dual vial adapter assemblage, a user still has to correctly distinguish between the two different types of vial adapter otherwise the liquid drug can be formed in the vial adapter with the male connector precluding attachment of a needleless syringe with its male Luer lock connector.
There is a need for dual vial adapter assemblages precluding the need for a user to distinguish between two types of vial adapters with a high degree of resemblance.